20 Sad Country Songs That Will Make You Cry

When you're feeling blue, cueing up the country music is probably your go-to move, because if there's one thing country artists know how to do right, it's sing their troubles away. Get ready to choke back some tears—we've gathered the saddest country songs of all time, and it's virtually impossible to get through this list without crying.

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1"The Dance," Garth Brooks

Don't you ever wonder if you had taken a left turn in life instead of veering for that right? This 1989 release still moves us decades later as it did in the '80s. "And now I'm glad I didn't know / The way it all would end, the way it all would go / Our lives are better left to chance, I could have missed the pain / But I'd have to miss the dance…" Brooks laments.

*Tries not to open high school yearbook.*

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2"I Will Always Love You," Dolly Parton

Yes, there's the Whitney Houston version. But it's not exactly easy to make it through the Smoky Mountain Songbird's version without holding back the floodgates. Her one-of-a-kind, beautiful warble may quell some of the pain, but the moment you start listening to the actual lyrics again, here come the tears…

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3"Paint Me a Birmingham," Tracy Lawrence

The 2003 single (also released by Ken Mellons) is gut-wrenching to get through every single time. "And I said if there's any way you can / Could you paint me back into her arms again?" Lawrence begs. "Could you paint me a Birmingham? / Make it look just the way I planned / A little house on the edge of town / Porch going all the way around,"he tragically continues of the life he will no longer lead, while the violin weeps.

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4"Crazy," Patsy Cline

Loneliness. Lovesickness. Rejection. This 1960s Willie Nelson-penned tune hits all the pillar of sadness rolled into one beautiful, heart-rending, pitiful swirl of emotion. Perhaps it's not the song itself that's so sad—but the forlorn frame of mind it takes us back to.

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5"When I'm Gone," Joey + Rory

We still miss country great Joey Feek who died in 2016 from cervical cancer. "But life will call with daffodils and morning glorious blue skies / You'll think of me some memory and softly smile to your surprise / And even though you love me still you will know where you belong / Just give it time we'll both be fine when I'm gone," Joey sings, in a moving track that the couple's friend originally penned as a tribute to her dying mother.

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6"Fire Away," Chris Stapleton

The guttural vocals of Stapleton elevate this sorrowful tune from very sad to total tear-machine. Emotive voice aside, the lyrics certainly torch our heartstrings, too: "Honey load up your questions / And pick up your sticks and your stones / And pretend I'm a shelter for heartaches / That don't have a home / Choose the words that cut like a razor / And all that I'll say / Is fire away."

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7"I Drive Your Truck," Lee Brice

"Eighty-nine cents in the ash tray / Half empty bottle of Gatorade rolling in the floorboard / That dirty Braves cap on the dash / Dog tags hanging from the rear view," Brice croons, already compelling us to get a little teary-eyed during the song's opening verse. And it only gets more heart-wrenching from there: "I leave that radio playing / Same old country station where you left it / Yeah, man I crank it up / And you'd probably punch my arm right now / If you saw this tear rolling down on my face / Hey, man I'm trying to be tough." Us too, Lee. Us too.

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8"Every Time I Hear That Song," Blake Shelton

It may be mid-tempo and feature studio production that's almost a touch too slick, but it still gets us, well, every time. We've all shared a song (or a few) with someone special who is no longer in our life—Shelton howling, "There's something in the bittersweet / The feeling of a memory / Right there in the moment / All I ever wanted was you and me," takes us right back.

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9"Hurt," Johnny Cash

You know a song is gonna be a doozy when it opens with "I hurt myself today / To see if I still feel / I focus on the pain / The only thing that's real." And it only gets more downcast from there: "I wear this crown of thorns / Upon my liar's chair / Full of broken thoughts / I cannot repair." We love the melancholy tune, but let's hope we never reach that dejected state.

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10"Tonight I Wanna Cry," Keith Urban

We've all been there with the TV turned on and "the sound turned down and a bottle of wine." Here, Urban captures that lonely night post-breakup feeling in the gloomiest of ways. And between the music video's dramatic grand piano, falling snow, and empty home, we're not sure what makes us want to curl up in bed the most.

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11"He Gets That From Me," Reba McEntire

You're going to need an extra roll of tissues for when you make it to the final verse of this one. After painting a picture of all the qualities the singer's son gets from his mom, McEntire breathily sings, standing by a tombstone, "Last night I heard him pray / Lord help me and momma make it through / And tell daddy we'll be ok / He said he sure misses you."

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12"Keep Your Eyes On Me," Faith Hill and Tim McGraw

Love may conquer all, but damn is getting through the tough times brutal. "Ain't it the sinner / Who gets all the grace sometime / Ain't it the saint / Who picks up the pieces left behind," McGraw croons. "Yeah, and it's human to hurt the one / You hurt the one you love the most / And you can't find the sun," he continues, before the two join up for the chorus and we totally lose it.

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13"Over You," Miranda Lambert

Lambert tunes have a unique knack for capturing a specific moment, glance, or 7 a.m. exit. But here, she captures a feeling: The total, all-encompassing sadness of losing someone you love. Co-written with Blake Shelton about Shelton's older brother who was sadly killed in a car accident, she sings: "Mid-February shouldn't be so scary / It was only December / I still remember the presents, the tree, you and me / But you went away / How dare you, I miss you." Man, do we need more tissues.

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14"Talladega," Eric Church

An unexpected choice for sure, but stay with us. Knowing that you'll never get your childhood back is perhaps the most inconsolable reality we have to confront in life. And nobody captures that better than Church in this bittersweet ode to "the summer before the real world started." Sure, there will be great loves, meaningful careers, and babies, but could anything ever beat a "Wing and a prayer down 65 / Five best friends on four bald tires?" Nope, but we'll be laughing and living, drinking and wishing forevermore to try and replicate that youthful high.

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15"Whiskey Lullaby," Brad Paisley

A song that almost whispers, the dramatic and doleful tale of a husband who returns from service to find his wife with another man and then takes his life still haunts us whenever we listen. With mournful, evocative backup singing from Alison Krauss good luck making it through the song without getting misty eyed, especially as you get to the part where you learn the wife took her life, too, stricken with remorseful pain from her husband's suicide.

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16"Drink a Beer," Luke Bryan

Don't let the song title fool you, this ballad is a real tearjerker. "When I got the news today / I didn't know what to say / So I just hung up the phone / I took a walk to clear my head / This is where the walking lead / Can't believe you're really gone / Don't feel like going home," Bryan softly sings. And unlike most of his arena rock anthems, this is one of the few Bryan songs that in concert you can probably hear a pin drop, as fans take a moment to pause and raise a drink to the ones they've loved and lost.

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17"A Place to Fall Apart," Merle Haggard

You know a song has serious heartbreak potential when Haggard pairs up with Willie Nelson and songwriting legend Freddy Powers to write it. And the 1984 No. 1 hit delivers. With angelic supporting vocals from Janie Fricke, the song has some of the most rueful lines about breaking up we've ever heard. From first line, "I'll probably never see you eye to eye again / This letter's meant to be my last farewell," to final hook, "I need to be somewhere hidin' when I feel the teardrops start / Lookin' for a place to fall apart," please send help or a hand to hold, 'cuz boy are we feeling blue.

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18"You Should Be Here," Cole Swindell

Swindell teamed up with songwriter Ashley Gorley for this wistful tribute to Swindell's dad, who died suddenly in 2013. The title alone captures the ethos of what everybody who has lost someone who is close to them knows, but the lyrics knock a somber punch right into our gut: "Yeah this is one of those moments that's got your name written all over it / And you know that if I have just one wish it'd be that you didn't have to miss this." How can any of life's happiest experiences not be tinged in sadness when that person you love isn't there to celebrate with you?

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19"Crazy Girl," Eli Young Band

Sometimes love doesn't work out. Sometimes it does and you're flooded with a sea of gratitude, adoration for your better half, and this EYB ballad that gives us a serious case of the sniffles. "Wouldn't miss a single day / I'd probably just fade away / Without you, I'd lose my mind / Before you ever came along / I was living life all wrong / Crazy girl, don't you know that I love you? / And I wouldn't dream of goin' nowhere," pleads singer Mike Eli. For another emotion rendition, check out Lee Brice (who co-wrote the song with Liz Rose) perform the 2012 ACM Song of the Year.

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20"Five More Minutes" by Scotty McCreery

In a poignant tribute to his grandpas, we'd bet even your toughest friend will not be able to get through this montage of home video footage without breaking down. Here, McCreery perfectly captures yearning for one more outing, meal or fishing trip with someone you love. A potent reminder to keep those precious minutes you do get close to your heart as they happen, and to add to your collection of life's little (but beautiful) moments every day.

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